Tips to Improve Your Health by Juicing

Thursday, January 15, 2009 by: Jo Hartley
Tags: juicing, health news, Natural News

(NewsTarget) When trying to incorporate raw foods into one's diet, juicing is a very effective way to add in large amounts of different raw foods. Many people have a large build-up of mucoid plaque within the intestines because of poor diets. When this happens, the body is severely limited in its ability to absorb necessary nutrients from foods eaten. Juicing will encourage and improve this absorption; and juicing is a very easy way to accomplish this.

Vegetable juicing is preferable over fruit juicing because fruit juice often increases insulin levels. Carrot and beet juices are an exception to this, however, because these vegetables juice similarly to fruit juices.

Another advantage of vegetable juicing is that by juicing the vegetables instead of eating them normally, one can consume many more vegetables than would ordinarily be possible. It is possible to consume one pound of raw vegetables per fifty pounds of body weight when consumed by juicing.

Tips for Optimal Juicing:

- Mix the pulp back into the juice because it is very high in fiber. This fiber will help with elimination and helps promote beneficial bacteria levels within the colon.
- The best juice is fresh juice. The ideal situation is to drink vegetable juice immediately after juicing. If carefully stored, however, vegetable juice can be stored for up to 24 hours with only a moderate nutritional loss.
- To store vegetable juice, pour into a clean, glass jar (opaque if possible) and cover with an airtight lid. Avoid as much airspace as possible in the container because oxygen will oxidize the juice and diminish the nutritional content.
- When consuming stored vegetable juice, allow it to sit at room temperature for approximately 30 minutes prior to drinking.

Vegetables for Juicing:

- Celery, fennel, and cucumbers are an easy combination for beginning juicers.

Once this is tolerated easily, begin to experiment with the dark green, leafy vegetables. The best leafy vegetables to use are:

- Red Leaf Lettuce
- Green Leaf Lettuce
- Escarole Lettuce
- Romaine Lettuce
- Spinach
- Kale
- Cabbage
- Parsley
- Cilantro

Many people object to the taste of vegetable juicing. Often adding a few green grapes or an apple to a dark green, leafy vegetable juice can make it much more palatable.

Another important key to a successful juicing program is to rotate the vegetables juiced. Do not juice and consume the same vegetables day after day because often this will create food sensitivities and even allergies to these vegetables.

It is also very important to clean the juicer carefully after each use. If this is not done adequately, mold can begin to develop and will contaminate the juice. Swirling around a few drops of bleach in warm water after each use will prevent mold from developing.

Vegetable juice is devoid of both fat and protein. For this reason, it is beneficial to add essential oils and some protein supplement when juicing to make the juiced meal more balanced.

Four Beneficial Supplements to Add to Vegetable Juice:

- Fish Oil (provides omega 3 fatty acids)
- Flaxseed Oil (provides omega 3 fatty acids)
- Cod Liver Oil (provides vitamin D and vitamin A)
- Evening Primrose Oil (provides omega 6 fatty acids)

A beneficial fast is to consume nothing other than fresh, diluted fruit and vegetable juice for a few days. A juice fast is believed to be even more effective than a plain water fast because wastes are eliminated faster and new tissues can be built more easily because of the nutrients present in the juices. Also, with a plain water fast, there are more incidences of ill-effects and decreased energy than with a juice fast.

Juicing is a very effective and easy way to improve one's immune system and one's health in a safe and natural way.

Source: http://www.healingdaily.com/juicing-for-heal...

About the author

Jo Hartley
Wife, Mother of 8, and Grandmother of 2
Jo is a 41 year old home educator who has always gravitated toward a natural approach to life. She enjoys learning as much as possible about just about anything!
http://loftymatters.com - Current Events
http://winemaiden.com - Simply Abundant Living